192 THE FRUITS OF THE COUNTRY-SIDE 



August and October. The plant is an annual. As 

 there is a long succession of blossoms to be gradually 

 expanded along the stem, so there is naturally, a long 

 succession of capsules to be gradually ripened. As the 

 capsules develop, so the enclosed caljrx increases in size 

 and becomes more woody in its nature. A branch of 

 henbane capsules lends itself very readily to skeletonising ; 

 and when we come across any group of skeleton leaves 

 we shall ordinarily find with them the capsules of the 

 poppy and the henbane. 



To those who would like to try some skeletonising we 

 would advise the gathering of the material, leaves or fruits, 

 in the Autumn, as at this season the fibrous substance is 

 strong and firm, and less likely to break than if gathered 

 earlier. Leaves of a resinous nature should be avoided, 

 as they will neither become amenable to treatment nor allow 

 others with which they are placed to do so. The selected 

 material should be placed in a large shallow pan into which 

 a sufficient amount of boiling rain-water to cover the leaves 

 is poured. The use of boiling rather than of cold water 

 is that it quickly destroys the vitality of the plants. The 

 pan must then be placed for some six weeks in the open 

 air in a position where it will get plenty of sunshine, fresh 

 rain-water being added as evaporation renders it necessary. 

 The things should be gently stirred from time to time, and 

 when they are seen to be shedding their epidermis they 

 must be placed individually beneath a tap and gently washed 

 in slowly running water : those that are found to be not 

 yet ripe for treatment are returned for a while to the pan. 

 To bleach them they must be exposed to the fumes of 

 sulphur, or washed in chloride of lime. 



